"It truly has the feel of a first-class plane ride," VIA President Keith Parker said Monday, as the buses were unveiled at a news conferences.

Local officials said they hope the buses will help increase the number of VIA's "choice riders," those who own cars but sometimes choose to use public transit to commute instead.

The buses also represent VIA's commitment to a green future, said VIA board President Henry Muñoz. The transit agency is a 100 percent user of CPS Energy's Windtricity program and is adding compressed-natural-gas buses and zero-emission electric buses to its fleet.

Mayor Julián Castro noted that the new buses will help air quality in San Antonio, the last major U.S. city to avoid designation as a noncompliant city under federal air standards.

Local officials said they hope to increase air quality by increasing VIA ridership, which gets people out of their cars, and by making the agency's fleet more environmentally friendly.

A common theme among leaders who spoke at Monday's unveiling was pitching a "new VIA" to San Antonio and encouraging residents to "give the bus a second shot."

Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff said investment in mass transit is the key to San Antonio's future.

"There's not a lot of money left for new highways," he said.

VIA's new hybrid buses cost about $550,000, which is about 50 percent more than a standard diesel model, Parker said. The purchase was funded exclusively through federal stimulus dollars. Bus fares will not increase because of the new buses, Parker added.